This Friday marks Sachin Tendulkar's birthday. The legendary India cricketer turns 53 today, and many celebrities from different fields, including cinema, have honoured him on his birthday. While Prithviraj Sukumaran, a longtime admirer of the cricketer is busy shooting his film Khalifa, time is ripe for a throwback to where the Malayalam superstar talked about his chance encounter with the cricketing legend.

In an event once, Prithviraj said that he happened to meet Sachin Tendulkar during a flight journey. "When I boarded the flight, Sachin sat right next to me as the last passenger. I am a die-hard fan of Sachin. When he sat adjacent to me, I did not know what to tell him and felt clueless."

Prithviraj added that a passenger from behind his seat asked him to get an autograph from Sachin on the cricketing superstar's autobiography.

"By God's grace, when that passenger got his signature, Sachin turned towards me and said, 'That is my biography'. I told him, 'I know sir. I just finished reading it early this morning.' Then, Sachin Tendulkar spoke to me until the flight landed in Mumbai. I am 100 per cent sure that Sachin might not remember our interaction today, but I could not forget it for the rest for my life," Prithviraj said.

The actor once again met Sachin in the United Kingdom while he was there for the shoot of his film Adam Joan. Back then, the actor took to social media and wrote, "I believe in God because I have seen him.. many times!"

Sachin has a bigger connection with Kerala and Malayalam cinema. The cricketer owned the football club, the Kerala Blasters, whose brand ambassador was Nivin Pauly once.